Sonar6 sponsored one of the 18 holes at the NZRL Charity Golf Day, at the Grange Golf Club. Our Sonar6 team was Mark Hellier, Peter Romeyn and two customers – Jamie McEwan from Datamail and Brent Wilkinson from Theta. The format was 4-Man Ambrose and the Sonar6 team came in third. Great team work (a la Angry Birds).  Mark and Jamie took care of the big hits. Mark equalled the longest shot of the day, but unfortunately it was only just in the rough. To count for the longest shot, it had to on the fairway – funny that rule.  Brent performed very well under huge pressure on the last hole, and Peter truly did some awesome putting, including a birdie putt. (Mark had the best gear and gadgets). Benji Marshall and the rest of the Anzac Kiwi test team were out in force, as was the Mad Butcher, Sir Peter Leitch, always doing his bit for the community. See the New Zealand Rugby League Charity Golf website for more details about this wonderful charity.

*(Dare you to try and pronounce Papatoetoe – call the NZ Support team if you need assistance.)

Sonar6 is hosting an Oxfam Coffee Morning in May. If you’d like to try it at your place, it’s a really great way to introduce some of the fairtrade goodness available these days, to the Peeps at your office. Drink coffee + gobble chocolately treats + and feel worthy at the same time. What’s not to love about that idea!! Check out their website for more information. We’re encouraging our team to whip up their own treats to share on the day – so stand by for some winning Sonar6-Fairtrade recipes on our Blog soon. And, if you have any gooey-sticky-fairtrade inspired recipes you want to share – send them in to us and you could win (trade?) a cool Sonar6 Tshirt.

Meet the Peeps
where you get to know us better by asking us strange, but family friendly questions

starring Xavier Martin, a Senior Development in the Auckland Office

Have you had stitches? Where: Head, knee, elbow, stomach, and other places I can’t tell here…

What are you reading (or playing) right now: The Sword of Truth (fantasy book by Terry Goodkind)

If you had to busk, what 3 songs would you sing: R.E.M Loosing my religion, Metallica Orion (no singing just guitar), Bob Marley Redemption Song cause I’m from New Caledonia

Perfect meal. Perfect setting. Perfect company: Any meals, any where with close friends… Vietnamese if my favorite though (Grandma is Vietnamese)

The city you’d most like to visit, that you haven’t already been to: San Francisco

What jewellery (or body art) are you wearing right now: Piercing (labret, 2x tongue). 1 silver ring, one ear pierced (left one)

A family recipe: My Grandma’s Vietnamese recipes, but can’t tell them here as it’s kind of a secret. Come to me if you want some though.

Glee – Yes or No:  ?

Cats or Dogs: Cats

Tea or Coffee: Tea

Who would play you in the film of your life: Me. My acting, so the movie, would be terrible. Although in everyday life I’m ok I think.

How many languages can you hold a conversation in: 2. Well it used to be 1 (French) and then 2 (English). Now I have the feeling I can’t hold a conversation in any of those 2. Mixing things, … pffff

And, finally, a Haiku about how you spend your spare time:

dimmed light, a comfy couch
and my laptop warming up
my lap for a development session

(I know the count is wrong)

or

riding my snowboard
smiling to the sun
going down a giant covered in snow

(still not good for the syllable count sorry)

Here's the winning Gummi's from our Our Design A Gummi contest (held in our User Group) .

The winners are: Amanda's 'Vitaco Superhero', Kyle's 'Ninja Turtle' (we're picking it's Donatello) and supreme winner Aaron's - 'Sloth' from The Goonies - an oldie but a goodie.

Congratulations to these guys who each get a very cool Sonar6 coffee mug made with their very own Gummi. And thanks to everyone who played the game.

You're are all winners!! (Except some of you are better than the others).

We each have our own Gummi coffee mug, (mine's Lady GaGa Gummi). It's a great way to -  a) feel like a member of the Sonar6 team, without b) sharing germs, or c) leaving anonymous dirty mugs in the kitchen.

If you'd like a coffee mug of your own, the person to impress is  Simon Verbiest - simon@sonar6.com . Email him and state your case.

If rainy days and Mondays are getting you down, knowing you’re not alone probably won’t perk you up. But if you need a couple of ideas for ways to make work more inspirational, we just might be able to help.

http://www.sonar6.com/colorpapers/pinterest/my-utopia/

Meet the Peeps
where you get to know us better by asking us strange, but family friendly questions

starring Patricia Kramer, one of our San Fransisco Sales Reps

Have you had stitches? Where:  No

What are you reading (or playing) right now: 3 Cups of Tea/Scrabble

If you had to busk, what 3 songs would you sing:

Don’t Cry for Me Argentina

Besame Mucho

Red Red Wine

Perfect meal.  Perfect setting. Perfect company:

Starter: Humboldt fog with rosemary toast and champagne

Main: Chilean Seabass over Moroccan spiced quinoa and Malbec

Dessert: Real Vanilla Bean Ice cream with big chunks of 90% dark chocolate with an old world Cabernet

Setting: Couch, fireplace, winter

Company: any/all that I love

The city you’d most like to visit, that you haven’t already been to: Sri Lanka

What jewellery (or body art) are you wearing right now: Earrings, ring on right 4^th finger, ring on left thumb

A family recipe:

Tallarini -

2lbs ground beef seasoned with salt and pepper

1 large onion (white or yellow) chopped

Garlic to taste chopped

1 large can chopped stewed tomatoes with Italian seasoning

I sm call tomato paste (optional for thicker consistency)

1 can whole corn, drained

1 lb cheddar cheese grated

1 can sliced black olives, drained

1 bag egg noodles

Prepare egg noodles al dente. Drain and put to side

Large skillet over medium heat sauté beef with salt/pepper to taste -add onion and garlic

Pre-heat oven 350 degrees. In casserole dish add noodles then meat mixture layer on drained can of corn then stewed tomato/paste top with grated cheddar cheese and sliced black olives

Bake approx. 30 minutes till all cheese melted and juices slightly bubbling.

If you had to sit next to an animal on a long haul flight, what would it be: Big Dog

Glee – Yes or No: No

Cats or Dogs: Big Dogs

Tea or Coffee: Both

Who would play you in the film of your life: Megan Mullally

How many languages can you hold a conversation in: One

And, finally, a Haiku about how you spend your spare time:

To the water I look

From the water I am continuously renewed

At the water I remain

As all our User Group members know, we’ve been running a special ‘Design A Gummi Contest’ for customers.

The winner gets their Gummi processed in our Gummi Factory™ and printed on a mug or tshirt.

That’s like your 30 seconds of fame, every time you have a coffee!

Submit your entry here>>

Wish you were part of our User Group? Step this way …

Not a customer? … unfortunately you can’t play. Sad Face .

Quickly go and talk to your HR Team now! Tell them how much you need to design a Gummi – and how much they need to have Performance Reviews that Don’t Suck. Run!! The contest closes at 12PM, Wednesday 3rd April (NZT).

Lacking inspiration? Check out these Gummis – you’ve got stiff competition … !

Meet the Peeps
where you get to know us better by asking us strange, but family friendly questions

starring Hendrik Thomas, our Senior Support Technician

Have you had stitches ? Where:

Yes . (Hendrik’s had stitches on his finger – there’s an amusing story)

What are you reading (or playing) right now:

Tiny Wings (it took me over 3 months to pass the last level)

If you had to busk, what 3 songs would you sing:

• Queen – Another One Bites the Dust
• Queen – Who Wants to Live Forever
• Dire Straits – Sultans of Swing

Perfect meal.  Perfect setting. Perfect company:

Kokoda, Blue Lagoon Java Island Fiji, my partner Christiane

The city you’d most like to visit, that you haven’t already been to:

San Francisco

What jewellery (or body art) are you wearing right now:

Green Stone Fish Hook

A family recipe:

Hendrik’s Yoghurt Bombe

Ingredients for 4 portions:

500 g     Natural Yogurt

120 g     Sugar

1 Tablespoon Vanilla Sugar

400 ml     Cream

250 g   frozen mixed berries or fresh fruits for the decoration

How to make it:

Mix the yogurt, sugar and vanilla sugar in a big bowl. Whip the cream and mix gently with the mixture. Let the fruits un-freeze.

Get a second bowl. Put a big sieve in it. Put a tea towel into the sieve.

Pour the mixture into the sieve with the tea towel. Leave the mixture over night in the fridge. The trick is that the water from the yogurt will drain into the bowl – and the mixture will become a delicious thick cream.

To serve the yogurt bombe, put a big plate on top of the bowl. Flip the bowl over and remove the sieve and tea towel carefully.

Add the extra fruits on top of the mixture and if you want sprinkle with some additional sugar.

If you had to sit next to an animal on a long haul flight, what would it be:

Cat

Glee – Yes or No:

No

Cats or Dogs:

Cats

Tea or Coffee:

Tea (Herbal, Rooibos but the black stuff)

Who would play you in the film of your life:

Sean Connery

And, finally, a Haiku about how you spend your spare time:

Hiking to the lonely beach

Kayaking to get even more far away

Hiking through the deep bush

A small boy has given a local weather man, who visited his class, the best performance review ever. It’s like the child was born to be part of the Sonar6 marketing team. ( Or, perhaps it’s like we think similarly to 8 year old boys? Unicorns, monkeys, bacon.) . If you’ve been looking for a new rating scale for your reviews,or some superlatives to drop into a conversation – you can pick some up from Flint. The Master. We like his style. “More awesome than a monkey wearing a tuxedo made out of bacon riding a cyborg unicorn with a lightsaber for the horn on the tip of a space shuttle closing in on Mars while ingulfed in flames.

He even has pictures of Unicorns. Like us. Here’s his Unicorn dispensing donuts (curiously he’s dispensing English doughnuts, not American donuts).